You know you want to take your resume to the next level, but you still have some questions.
I totally understand.
Some resume questions seem to come up more often than others, so I've compiled a list of the most frequently asked questions here.
If you have a question, but you don't see it on this page... no problem! Just contact me and I'll happily address any concerns you may have.
Because you’re not good at it. Seriously.
I bet you’re super-good at what you do for a living, but unless your skill set includes strong writing, heavy-duty hiring experience, and designing beautiful marketing documents, you probably aren’t so great at writing resumes.
Luckily, what’s difficult for you is easy for me.
I have writing, branding, marketing and publishing experience, and I am an active recruiter, so when I do your resume, you get all of that on your side, and the result is a resume that will be far better than you could come up with on your own and far better than 98% of your competition.
My clients tell me they’re amazed to see how much new confidence they gain from their new resume. Seeing yourself presented in a a positive, professional and personal way in a beautiful, well-written document puts new energy into a job search and is a great way to break things open.
Honestly, I’m not for everyone. If you need a stuffy corporate document or you don’t care about the quality of your most important marketing document, I’m not your guru.
But if you want an awesome resume, we might be a fit.
Resumes are one of my superpowers, and honestly, I’ve never seen a single person who has my special combination of writing, publishing, branding, marketing and recruiting.
I’m also fun and inspiring to work with, and will leave you pumped, confident, inspired, focused and ready to go. For real.
Check me out on LinkedIn to read more about my years of experience in the hiring world, and read recommendations from some fantastic people I’ve worked with.
No. Each resume I create is custom for the person, and the information in it is confidential. I will promise that your resume will be unique, like you, and you’ll be proud to share it.
My resumes are never overworked or pretentious, they’re not weird or gimmicky and they’re not generic or boring.
What they all have in common is that they are clean in design, contemporary in feeling, create instant positioning for a target job, and are written in the simplest but most informative language possible.
In other words, they look great, they read well, and tell the story you need to tell to get the interviews you want.
Most of my resume clients are professionals in fields where competition for the great jobs is fierce so a standout resume is absolutely imperative.
The kinds of people I work with are:
Essentially, I specialize in creating resumes for awesome people who are looking for awesome jobs. That’s you, right?
No, I do all of my work virtually. Which is much more efficient because there is no wasted travel time and fewer distractions, not to mention that my clients are all over the country. All contact is on the phone and by email.
Yes, I can do any kind of resume, though my sweet spot is creating standout resumes for the modern American business world.
My process takes time – on your part, to thoughtfully complete your information form (which is an important part of the process to craft your story), and on my part to write and design the right resume for you, and then together as we make it perfect.
Most people have their new resume in 2 or 3 weeks, a few days more with LinkedIn and a cover note. A lot depends on your turnaround and my project pipeline, too. I can occasionally accommodate a rush project but a great resume is worth the time it takes.
Once I give you the draft of your new resume, we have one more editing call to go down your changes, questions and edits, and then I finalize your document and send it to you. If a typo slips through, I’ll fix that at any time, but the aim is to make every change during that editing call.
You’ll get your final resume as a Word document and a PDF that will be immediately useable for your target job. If you don’t use Word, you are responsible for sorting out any compatibility issues.
It’s a great idea to keep your resume updated, since you never know who might ask for it for the job of your dreams. I recommend waiting a few months to update after you get your new job so you have something to tak about, and then keeping it updated moving forward.
I do, and am happy to write a custom cover letter template for you, but first, go read some of my blogs about how to write a good cover letter… it’s really not as hard as you think.
We’ll touch on strategy in our interview call, but if you’re planning your path from where you are to where you want to go, it would probably be worth investing in a coaching session or series where we can brainstorm and plan together.
Absolutely. Check out my coaching services. You can book as little as thirty minutes with me to talk about whatever you need.
Topics people hash out with me include:
Honest input from someone who’s on the front lines of the hiring world every day, with a broad knowledge of business, a way with words, a big heart and a commitment that you get the job that’s right for you... who couldn’t use that?
Maybe. When I have time, I love writing websites, marketing documents and bios, as long as they are short projects. If you have something in mind, let me know and we can talk about it.
I aim to keep my rates as low as possible while still making sure the rate allows me enough time to create a fantastic document for you without rushing or cutting corners. A great resume takes hours and can’t be rushed.
I’ve seen examples of $49 and $99 resumes, and they were awful. Think about it. At that price, your information is just being plugged into a template and the result is bound to be ordinary. If you’re competing for a great job, you can’t afford ordinary and mediocre.
Choose a resume writer based on value, not price. Look at it this way: for most people, a new resume costs about one day’s pay, so if your new resume gets you a job just one day sooner, it will pay for itself. It’s an investment, not an expense.
Not all resumes are the same. The more senior the job, the more complicated the story the resume needs to tell, both in terms of work experience and understanding the role and its accomplishments.
Tiered pricing reflects the level of difficulty at creating each resume, and there are times that I quote a custom price, too.
I wish I could, but that wouldn’t make much business sense considering a large portion of my clients are unemployed.
What I do instead is try to provide free information on my site through free books and blogs and keep my rates as affordable as possible.
I prefer PayPal and snail mail checks are problematic, but if that’s your only option, let’s see what we can work out.
Sorry, no. I am not set up to accept payment plans and the cost has to be paid in advance before our first call.
Please Note: The Resume Review is a report with my comments, and I don't make any changes to your actual resume. You will have to make the recommended changes to your own resume, so you should either be confident with MS Word or have someone who can help you. If you're not sure you can handle that, you might be better going for The Resume Polish instead, where I make the changes for you.
Seven-Day Upgrade Offer: Once you receive your Resume Review Report, upgrade to a Resume Polish or Resume Restart within seven days, and I'll credit you $75.
Please Note: Sometimes a resume is beyond repair or polishing. If your current resume is very long, is densely packed with information that is not easy to edit, or is extremely technical, I might need to either charge you more for the extra time, or recommend that you consider a complete Resume Rewrite. If that's the case, I'll email you and let you know what I'd suggest.
Seven-Day Upgrade Offer: If you started with the Resume Review, upgrade to The Resume Polish within seven days and get a $75 credit.